Oil prices fall for third day on hopes of limited Saudi supply disruptions

Oil prices experienced a third consecutive day of decline on Friday, driven by reduced concerns over potential Saudi supply disruptions, despite ongoing Middle East tensions. Brent crude futures dropped 79 cents, or 0.75%, to $104 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate futures fell 70 cents, or 0.69%, to $101.20 a barrel. The two benchmarks had previously declined about 1% on Thursday.

Despite the drop in oil prices, markets largely ignored reports of fresh clashes between Saudi Arabia and Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis, which escalated the conflict in the Middle East. Earlier this week, prices had surged to near four-month highs following reports that Saudi Arabia was working to restore about half the capacity of its East-West oil pipeline and offer more crude shipments to Asian refiners through ship-to-ship transfers off Oman's Sohar port.

Market insights head Priyanka Sachdeva noted that recent efforts to revive Saudi export capacity have alleviated some immediate supply worries. However, the timeline for reopening the pipeline and normalizing crude flows remains uncertain. The key question for analysts is whether physical flows can normalize and the possible timeline for doing so. If there is a sustained improvement in Hormuz traffic, some of the geopolitical premium might dissipate further, Sachdeva added.

The US and Iran have not held peace talks since the interim agreement in June collapsed, and the war is expected to be discussed at the United Nations General Assembly next week, with an Iranian delegation allowed to participate.